Thursday, 30 August 2012

I covered a portrait top fold A6 blank with paper from My Mind's Eye Colorful Christmas range. The two lower corners were rounded off. I adhered a length of green felt ricrac over the join and knotted some white cord above, leaving a tassel. The knot was covered with a felt and a chipboard snowflake from the Colorful Christmas range. A Pebbles Inc. sentiment rub-on was applied to the lower left corner.

The Snoopy stamp is called Snow Sledding (FR1045) by Stampabilities, this was stamped in black Versafine and clear embossed. It was then coloured in with Promarkers, trimmed and matted on black card then onto a piece of patterned paper. The image was then adhered to the top of the card.

Tip: When heat embossing I heat from behind, you have much more control and you get a smoother finish with less chance of burning. Don't 'waft' the heat gun around, hold it in one place and when the powder starts to melt, move to another part of the image.

I hope you like this card, it is fun, bright and quirky. As soon as I saw this stamp it was one of those I HAD to have!!!

Wednesday, 29 August 2012

(The weather isn't very pleasant at all - had to bring washing in because of bliddy rain - boo yah). Plus, is it me or is t'internet really slow these days? I know in Norfolk we don't have the best broadband, but it's getting to the point of ridiculous. Thing is we still have to pay our monthly fee no matter whether were getting a good connection or not. Right, grumble over.

So, I've created another card for Christmas. This is perfect to give to those who moan and say they hate Christmas but end up having a whale of a time every year!

The stamp is from Penny Black and is called Naughty or Nice? (3282L) by Margaret Sherry. It actually has three images on the stamp, but I just wanted the snowman without his hat and scarf, so a masked off the other images, inked it up with black Versafine and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. After colouring him in with Promarkers, I trimmed the image, then mounted it on the left of a rectangular piece of black card.

The paper is some Christmas paper I've had for years and thought it would compliment the image. A rectangle of the paper was adhered to the lower left of a square blank. I knotted a length of bright pink ribbon around the right hand side of the blank panel. This was then attached to the card with foam pads.

To finish I coloured in some Basic Grey lettering with a black Promarker to spell the Bah! Humbug.

Ta da! There you have it. I think it's fun image to make even the grumpiest of Scrooges smile.

Thanks for having a peep at what I've been up to. Ta ta for now. Colette xx

Tuesday, 28 August 2012

Hope you all had a lovely Bank Holiday and didn't get too drenched. I'm all mixed up today, I keep thinking it's Monday (probably not the only one). Anyhoo, here is another Christmas card :)

It's actually one I did last year and never got round to posting on the blog. I love it though, so am going to make another exactly the same.

I have quite a few Snoopy stamps, they are all wood mounted so they are quite nice to collect. I know wood mounted take up more space, but I always find they stamp the image much better.

The stamp is called Snoopy and the Snowman (G1077) by Stampabilities, available from The Glitter Pot, the sentiment is from the Let It Snow (00306) 12 x 12 cut out sheet by Around the Block, which is also still available from The Craftz Boutique. You can go straight to these shops by clicking the links on the right.

After stamping the image in black Versafine ink and heat embossing with clear embossing powder, I coloured it in with Promarkers, then covered the snowman with Stickles Crystal glitter glue.

I trimmed the image and sentiment and mounted them side by side onto black card, the join was covered by black and white spotty ribbon tied in a knot at the top. This panel was then mounted onto an A6 blank. I finished the card off with some rub-on snowflakes, a sentiment and a couple of stick pins secured in the knot of the ribbon. It's a bright, fresh card, a bit more time consuming than some, but for that special person, it's worth it.

So that's it for today, can't wait to get started on another of these Snoopy cards! Ta ta for now, Colette xx

Monday, 27 August 2012

Hope this post finds you all fit and well! I've had a fairly lazy day today, but I have managed to make another Christmas card.

I love the colours on this one. I was inspired by an old collection of Bo Bunny 'Tis The Season. I have used my fave stamp set of the moment, Swanky Snowdudes by Paper Smooches. I punched a scallop edge onto some turquoise card using the Scallops On the Edge die by Tim Holtz. I then attached this to the top of an A6 blank.

Next I stamped and heat embossed the images with black Versfine and clear embossing powder and coloured in with Promarkers. I punched out the images using various sized punches, along with circles in lime, red and chocolate. After mounting each image onto a coloured circle, I wrapped a length of white sparkly ribbon around the turquoise section and knotted at the left. The images were then arranged and stuck down with foam pads. I finished with some Shimmer Dots by Papermania on the snowflakes.

I think it a fresh, fun and simple card. I had a lot of fun creating this one.

Well, that's it for today. Got to go and get ready, off to an Indian restaurant in Aylsham with some friends for a curry (nom nom). I bet we'll all smell lovely tomorrow!

Sunday, 26 August 2012

It's a bit breezy here today in Norfolk, but there is blue sky out there. We had a terrific thunderstorm last evening, it went on for ages too.

Amongst the thunder and rain, I made another Christmas card. I have had this Rudolph stamp for a few years now and I love it. So in my usual style I kept the card clean and simple.

The stamp is Whimsy Rudolph by Magenta (code 37234.H) and is still available.

The spotty card is Black & Kraft Mini Dot Reverse by Canvas Corp. Other supplies used were an A6 kraft blank, red bakers twine, a red button, a rub-on sentiment by Studio G, and a couple of red gems by Bo Bunny. Black Versfine ink and clear embossing powder were used for the image and I coloured it in with Promarkers.

The beauty of this stamp is that Rudolph doesn't have a nose! In the past I have given him one with a gem (as above), a blob of red Stickles glitter glue or a red brad.

This card somehow gives me thoughts of a big mug of cocoa on a cold chilly day!

Thursday, 23 August 2012

At last! I have started on my Christmas cards. This card was inspired by a sketch I had seen. As I like things simple, I thought it would be a perfect layout for a Christmas card.

I used a 13.5 cm square kraft blank and with the fold at the top, trimmed 1cm from the side. The snowman is by Paper Smooches Swanky Snowdudes and the lettering is Alphadot also by Paper Smooches. The patterned paper is from the Holly Jolly Christmas 6x6 pad by Echo Park.

I simply stamped and embossed the image and lettering, coloured in with Promarkers and cut out. The speech bubble is a die from X-Cut, I mounted it onto black card for impact. One large circle was die cut in patterned paper and another in white card. These were adhered to the bottom right corner and trimmed, the snowman and speech bubble were then mounted with foam pads.

I think this has got me in the mood, ideas are swimming around thick and fast. Hope you like! Thanks for visiting and happy crafting!

Sunday, 19 August 2012

It's a lovely day again here in Norfolk. Just thought I would post my projects from the October issue of Crafts Beautiful. When they asked me to come for a idea and theme, well it had to be Halloween! I love Halloween, I love doing up the house and carving pumpkins (see a post from Nov 2011 for last years pumpkins).

Of course when I did these for the magazine there wasn't really many crafty Halloween items about. So after the success of my pirate drawings, I did a set of witchy themed ones. I was really pleased with the way they turned out, more comical than scary.

The other project is a couple of Christmas cards I did for Bo Bunny and their Father Christmas range. I don't usually go for traditional colours and images, but I have to say, this range is gorgeous. Me being me, I put my own modern twist on things! I love Bo Bunny anyway, so working with these was great.

Crafts Beautiful has done me proud with fantastic photography and eye catching layouts! Check out the rest of the magazine for some fantastic projects, plus there's a fab free foil embossing kit with this issue. For more crafting ideas visit Crafts
Beautiful, a great website where you can find more projects, hints, tips, download papers and templates and there's a friendly forum too. You need to register to download or post on the forum, but it's really quick and simple.

Well, that's all for the moment. Hope to post some more very soon. Thanks for stopping by!

Friday, 17 August 2012

Three posts in one week! I'm on a bit of an energy kick at the mo. I'm hoping to post a bit more often. We'll see....

Just finished another commission for Crafts Beautiful, all I need to do now is to check the instructions and it's ready to post. Then I must start getting on with Christmas cards before I start the next commission. Loving all this creativity!

Here is today's creation. I made it for my Auntie Elma's birthday. I haven't really done butterflies in the past, but I fell in love with this stamp set.

The cloud paper is by American Crafts, the ink pads are Violet, Lime and Mountain Lake by Versacolor and the stamps are Butterflies and Blooms by Craftwork Cards. The card is an A6 portrait top fold. Teal card, purple ribbon, teal twine a few adhesive gems and a rub-on sentiment were used.

The clarity of these stamps is amazing, even when using a normal pigment ink rather than a Versafine. The stamp set has the patterned butterflies, but also some solid ones so you could stamp in layers!

Thursday, 16 August 2012

Hello!!! Today's card is a birthday card I made for my Auntie Jean. I've had the stamps for a while and have been itching to use them. As usual with me, I wanted to use really bright funky colours, I knew what I wanted, but did I have the right paper? You know how it is, all the papers/card/stamps etc. you have, you never have the exact pattern/shade/image.

I remembered I had recently purchased an Amy Tangerine Sketchbook 6x6 pad by American Crafts. The colours were just what I was looking for. The stamps are the Friendly Flowers set by Paper Smooches and the black ribbon is seam binding (great if you dampen it, scrunch it up and dry with a heat gun). It was then a matter of stamping, heat embossing and colouring the images in with Promarkers.

I had great fun creating this card, and speaking to my Auntie Jean, she was thrilled. Hope you like and thanks for having a peep! Colette x

Wednesday, 15 August 2012

Today I'm showcasing a card I made for a lovely lady, Dawn. She works in a craft shop near to where my Mum & Dad live in Yorkshire. When I took Emily back home, I popped up to the shop. I knew Dawn wouldn't be there as she's recovering from a recent op, so I took this card and a friend who also works in the craft shop passed it on.

With the fold at the top of a white square scalloped card, I trimmed off both sides. The paper is from the Springtime 6x6 paper pad by Echo Park and the stamps are from the Healthy Vibes set by Paper Smooches. I stamped the images in black ink and heat embossed with clear powder, then coloured in with Promarkers. It was finished off with a length of shocking pink grosgrain knotted under the image.

I was aiming for fresh colours with a clean and simple look and I was really pleased with the result.

Wednesday, 1 August 2012

Well, it's been a tiring but fun filled couple of weeks. My nine year old niece Emily came to stay with us on the 21st July. I'm taking her back home to Yorkshire this coming Friday. I wonder if I will have six hours of non stop blabbing, singing and alphabet games on the way like last year?

Emily isn't here at the moment, Simon has taken her to Bewilderwood for the day, it's only at Hoveton (nr Wroxham) so they didn't have to set off early. Not sure what time they will be back or what state of collapse Simon will be in.

We've had a couple of days crafting, and yesterday she made a head band. I showed her how to make gathered fabric flowers, she picked fabrics centred around pinks and lilacs and away she went. I promised her I would post it on my blog for all to see.

I think she has done a magnificent job. She is going to show my sister Yvonne how to make the flowers.

Emily is also obsessed with our spa bath. Well, more like obsessed with creating mountains of bubbles. Anyway, the other night she decided to do an 'Afro look', here are a couple of head shots.

Very 'cool', Emily!! She also did and Elvis 'quiff', which was hilarious and happened to be my favourite, the Afro is funny though.

On another note, have you seen the September issue of Crafts Beautiful? Here is a peek at my new home cards in this issue.

I just loved creating these. The Dwelling stamp set by Claudine Hellmuth is a particular favourite of mine. They are so versatile, you could actually create a snowy house scene for Christmas cards.

The September is packed, as always with fantastic projects, hints and tips. For more crafting ideas visit Crafts
Beautiful. Along with downloadable templates for all projects, including the house shaped card, bird house and sun and cloud motifs used in my feature.

I've got another couple of cards to show you, but I'll pop them on my next post (hopefully next week - after a few days 'rest').